Oceana Criticizes U.S. House Passage of H.R. 1231 - Oceana

Oceana Criticizes U.S. House Passage of H.R. 1231

Press Release Date: May 12, 2011

Location: Washington, D.C.

Contact:

Anna Baxter | email: abaxter@oceana.org
Anna Baxter

 

 

The U.S. House of Representatives today voted 243-179 to pass H.R. 1231, a bill that would mandate expanded offshore drilling to double the amount of oil now extracted from the Outer Continental Shelf by 2027.   To double the amount of drilling, the bill would open all waters on the Atlantic coast, the Southern California coast, and even the Arctic Ocean and Alaska’s Bristol Bay to new offshore drilling, forcing the Obama administration to allow drilling in areas they are planning to protect. 

Oceana senior campaign director Jacqueline Savitz reacted:

“After last year’s disaster, we should be scaling back and ultimately stopping offshore drilling, not expanding it to pristine coastlines. Mandating a doubling of current oil production will industrialize U.S. coastlines that are now prized for tourism, recreational and commercial fishing.  Studies show this will do nothing to change the price of gas.  It’s unconscionable that Congress continues to put the oil industry’s interests above those of everyone else.  We give them our coasts and tax dollars and get nothing in return,” said Savitz.

Oceana is the largest international advocacy group working solely to protect the world’s oceans.  Oceana wins policy victories for the oceans using science-based campaigns. Since 2001, we have protected over 1.2 million square miles of ocean and innumerable sea turtles, sharks, dolphins and other sea creatures. More than 500,000 supporters have already joined Oceana. Global in scope, Oceana has offices in North, South and Central America and Europe. To learn more, please visit www.oceana.org.